About

Laurie Coyle explores the beauty and struggles of people excluded from our history books in her documentary filmmaking and writing.

She began her career co-authoring a groundbreaking study of Chicana garment strikers, Women at Farah, which continues to be taught in gender, labor and Chicana studies. Her most recent film, Adios Amor: The Search for Maria Moreno, was broadcast on PBS VOCES and won an Imagen Award as part of the series. PBS American Masters aired her debut documentary OROZCO: Man of Fire (co-director Rick Tejada-Flores).

Laurie has broadened the reach and impact of her films by engaging audiences far and wide, from the British Museum to the US-Mexico border, to first generation college students and farm worker associations throughout rural California. Her film-related presentations connect farm labor and migration, motherhood and activism, social justice and public art, historical narratives and community empowerment.

The National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities are among the foundations that have supported Laurie’s projects multiple times. She has been a BAVC Media Makers and Latino Producers Academy fellow.

In addition to directing and producing, Laurie has worked as a writer and consultant for over 50 award-winning documentary filmmakers. Before becoming a filmmaker, she majored in political theory at UC Berkeley and worked as an oral historian focusing on the untold stories of women workers. She is co-founder of the bilingual storytelling initiative MiHistoria and produces its online story archive www.mihistoria.net.

Artist Statement

My films are always searches. Whether it’s the long lost photographs of migrant mother Maria Moreno, the soaring murals of José Clemente Orozco, or a tattered Japanese doll in a junk shop, they echo universal themes of human rights, migration, imagination and empowerment. I am drawn to unsung heroes and heroines, revolutionary individuals who persevere in serving the larger community despite personal obstacles or tragedies, whose efforts make history and create change. Before I had the privilege of directing documentaries, I learned a great deal working as a Producer, Associate Producer and Archival Researcher. And prior to that, I worked as a Production Manager who specialized in waking up early to bake muffins for my crews! It was an honor to work for talented filmmakers on projects of historic significance, like The Fight in the Fields: Cesar Chavez and the Farmworkers Struggle and Ralph Ellison: An American Journey. Hardly whispered in the field or the edit room was the M word—motherhood. These films supported me while I raised my daughter, thinking back on my own mother who juggled night classes and anti-Vietnam War protests while raising seven kids. After working on and, in the case of OROZCO: Man of Fire, directing documentaries about illustrious men, I made a film about Maria Moreno, a farmworker leader, preacher and mother whose story was silenced. Storytelling is a form of direct action that creates impact, and part of my work now involves engaging with “many Marias” beyond the film screen to bring their stories to light through workshops and on the web. I’m proud of my Irish roots, diverse family, and being Chloe Xantal González Coyle’s mother. When I’m not working on a film, I’m happy hiking in my local canyon, taking photos, reading poetry, practicing tai chi, making books—and baking!